It is desirable to determine the occurrence of various physical parameters during the combustion phase of the air-fuel mixture occurring within the combustion chamber of an internal combustion engine. Preferably, the combustion process with respect to time should be observed during actual operation of the engine. Observation may, for example, extend to the temporal and geometric distribution of the flame occurring during combustion; sensing of the ignition instant, sensing of fuel injection or supply processes; and, especially, sensing of undesirable or irregular combustion processes.
Irregular combustion may result in knocking of the engine. Such knocking occurs under certain operating conditions. Knocking, as usually understood, is caused by oscillations within the audible frequency band of the compressed fuel-air mixture which is triggered by a shock wave. The heat transmission to the piston walls and cylinder walls of the engine is substantially increased during such oscillations. A thermal overload of the surfaces will result, so that knocking should be avoided. For most efficient operation of the engine, it is desirable to utilize the working range of the engine to the greatest possible extent and, therefore, the engine should be operated just below the "knocking limit". It is necessary to have some means which early and reliably indicate knocking or a tendency to knock, so that the operating parameters of the internal combustion (IC) engine can then be so controlled that the engine will operate just below the knocking limit.
Various types of sensors to determine knocking have been proposed. Mechanical systems which sense the transferred oscillations to the engine, for example using a piezoelectric sensor, are easily made but have the disadvantage that such systems are difficult to operate reliably and free from interference and stray signals, since they also may respond to externally generated jolts and oscillations which arise in the operation of a vehicle to which the engine may be coupled, for example over bad roads or corrugated roads.
It has also been proposed to sense and observe the combustion process by optical means. An optical sensor and background literature are described in the cross-referenced application, assigned to the assignee of the present application, Ser. No. 214,481, filed Dec. 9, 1980, MULLER et al now U.S. Pat. No. 4,393,687. This application discloses a sensor which includes light guide fibers or filaments which are positioned to sense the combustion event optically, the light guides being connected to a photoelectric transducer which, in turn, provides output signals to a tuned or filter circuit which is responsive to or tuned to expected knocking frequency to provide an output signal if shock waves occurring within the combustion chamber are of a frequency which results in engine knocking. Of course, the signals derived from the photoelectric transducer can be processed in any desired manner. The aforementioned patent application further describes integration the light guide with a spark plug of an internal combustion engine, or to place light guides in the cylinder head gasket or seal, for eventual connection to photoelectric transducers.
Sensing physical parameters occurring with the combustion chamber of an IC engine by optical means causes problems: The optical element which faces the combustion chamber, for example a glass rod, a fiber cable, or the like, will become dirty or blackened during operation, particularly upon extended operation, so that effective output and suitable measuring and evaluation of the light output becomes difficult, and in a limiting case even impossible after some operating time. Various proposals have been made to keep the side of the light guide facing the combustion chamber clean, or to so position and shape that portion of the light guide that it will be subjected to flushing action by induced fuel, swirling air-fuel gases, and the like, to thereby maintain the optical transmissivity thereof.
One of the difficulties which arise is that ordinary glasses which can provide windows to the light guides can be used only in the "cold" area of a sensor secured through a cylinder head of the IC engine, that is, at the side of the sensor remote from the combustion chamber since the heat during combustion will cause the glasses to melt. The glasses, however, being exposed to the combustion gases, will be subjected to fogging and deposits from combustion residues which will precipitate preferentially on the "cold" surface of the window, that is, cold with respect to combustion temperature. Yet, ordinary glasses have the advantage that they can be melted into a fitting or socket to be both gas-tight as well as pressure resistant to the high operating pressures arising within the combustion chamber. Light guides made of quartz-glass are temperature-stable, but cannot be placed in a sensor housing and secured by a melt connection.
Sensing only light as it occurs during combustion does not provide output indications of all conditions of combustion. Under some limiting conditions, the light output cannot be used to determine the occurrence of shock waves or the tendency for shock waves to occur. Light signals are not representative of primary released energy; thus, they cannot be used directly to determine the actual indicated pressure p.sub.i which occurs. The pressure in the combustion space is a secondary reaction which is mechanically utilized. Radiation losses and other losses cause a difference between light output and pressure. The average indicated pressure p.sub.i corresponds to the average torque per cycle of the internal combustion (IC) engine, and thus is a suitable parameter to optimize the ignition timing, and particularly the ignition instant of the IC engine to obtain maximum torque. Ignition systems which have optimizing circuitry to determine ignition timing may not operate to fullest advantage when using only light output as an indication of torque and, for some applications, it is desirable to accurately sense combustion space pressure as well as light output of the flame of the explosion and of burning of the fuel-air mixture. This is particularly important in order to recognize and sense irregular combustion conditions, and unusual and non-regular flame propagation within the combustion chamber.